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To celebrate their fiftieth anniversary the School of Applied Psychology at University College Cork are bringing notable psychologists from across Ireland to give a series of talks at the School. Each contributor to the seminar series has made a significant research contribution internationally and the series will be launched on November 5th with a talk by Professor Ian Robertson from the Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin.

Ian Robertson is Professor of Psychology at Trinity College Dublin and was the founding Director of Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience. Ian is also a member of the Royal Irish Academy. His research focuses on the neuropsychology of brain rehabilitation and attention. He is currently a lead PI on the Technology Research for Independent Living (TRIL) programme, which aims to discover and develop technologies necessary to enhance health and independence for older people while focusing on understanding and delivering on their support needs and preferences at home or in care environments.

Prof Robertson’s talk will be entitled “The Mystery of the Swedish Twins: Why does education protect against Alzheimer’s Disease?”

It will take place this Wednesday from 5-6pm in Room G7&8, School of Applied Psychology, Cork Enterprise Centre, North Mall.

More information on this talk, and the others in the series can be accessed here.

UCC’s College of Medicine and Health is currently promoting its MSc in End-of-Life Healthcare Ethics. This is a is a multidisciplinary programme, offered on a part-time basis over a two-year period.

AIM

To enable students to identify, research and critically evaluate the ethical, professional, legal and philosophical underpinnings of end-of-life decisions and care in hospital and healthcare settings.

PARTICIPATION

The programme is primarily intended for health professionals (e.g. registered nurses, doctors, consultants, directors of nursing, pharmacists, speech therapists, physiotherapists and occupational therapists); allied professionals (e.g. hospital and nursing home administrators, social workers, chaplains, psychologists, members of clinical and research ethics committees); solicitors; theologians, counsellors; journalists; members of the general public with a keen interest in the subject area.

The Irish Hospice Foundation is offering 2 scholarships in end- of-life healthcare ethics to cover half of the MSc programme fees over two years for the successful candidates. The scholarships are open to prospective students who have applied for the MSc programme AND who have special interest or organisational backgrounds in dementia care and who will apply their learning in these settings.

‌The Centre for Gerontology and Rehabilitation, University College Cork, in conjunction with partners, will host the inaugural National Conference on Dementia Care in Acute Hospitals, on Friday January 31st 2014, from 9.30am to 4.15pm, in U.C.C.

This one-day interdisciplinary conference will be opened by Minister for Disability, Older People, Equality & Mental Health, Kathleen Lynch, T.D, in the Western Gateway Building.

Dr Suzanne Timmons can be seen on this video outlining the findings the Irish National Audit of Dementia

The Conference Programme (240kB) boasts speakers from a wide range of backgrounds including Gerontology, Psychiatry and Psychiatry of Old Age, Nursing, Occupational Therapy, General Practice and the HSE. The event will provide a forum for the most cutting-edge developments in research and practice relating to dementia care in hospital settings to be disseminated and discussed.

Some highlights of the conference will include an expert panel discussion, chaired by Professor Des O’ Neill, focusing on the issues surrounding best care for people with dementia in acute hospitals, and an afternoon breakout session for delegates with a special interest in the area of delirium in the acute hospital setting.

Topics will include the National Dementia Strategy, GP/community perspectives, the economic perspective, challenging behaviour, delirium, the hospital environment, education, and end of life and palliative care, all as they relate to dementia care in acute hospitals.

This event will also host the official launch of the results of the first ever ‘Irish National Audit of Dementia Care in Acute Hospitals’ (INAD), a collaboration between UCC, TCD and the HSE Quality and Patient Safety Directorate.

RCPI approval for 6 external CPD credits.

An Bord Altranais Category 1 approval for 5 CEUs (credits).

To avoid disappointment, delegates can register early by purchasing their ticket below.

Commissioner Máire Geoghegan Quinn at the COLLAGE launch with representatives from University Collage Cork, Dundalk Institute of Technology, Louth County Council, Louth City Council and the Tyndall National Institute.

From left: Prof John Higgins, Head of the College of Medicine and Health, UCC; Joan Martin, Director of Services, Louth County Council; Rodd Bond, Director of the Netwell Centre, Dundalk Institute of Technology; Prof George Shorten, Dean of the School of Medicine, UCC; Dr Michael Murphy, President of University College Cork; Máire Geoghegan Quinn, EU Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science; Cllr Declan Breathnach, Cathlaoirleach, Louth County Council; Cllr Michael O’Connell, Cork City Council; Prof Anita Maguire, Vice President for Research and Innovation, UCC; Mary Deery, Louth Age Friendly County; Dr. Kieran Drain, Tyndall CEO; Prof William Molloy, Centre for Gerontology and Rehabilitation, UCC.

Commissioner Máire Geoghegan Quinn visiting Assert for Health Centre at UCC yesterday.
ASSERT: (Application of Science to Simulation Education Research and Training) has been developed to meet the challenges of building scalable and accessible education solutions for healthcare.
The College of Medicine and Health at UCC has joined with world wide collaborators to develop the centre where more than 50 independent researchers (the ASSERT for Health Research Group at UCC) from health, engineering, informatics and pedagogical backgrounds develop customized educational tools for health professionals, patients and the wider community to work together to bring ideas from research to implementation and the market.

COLLAGE, Ireland’s 3 star Reference Site on Active and Healthy Ageing, was officially launched today by EU Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science, Máire Geoghegan Quinn. COLLAGE is a Collaboration on Ageing, and it is made up of members from University College Cork, Dundalk Institute of Technology, Louth County Council, Cork City Council, Trinity EngAGE (incorporating TILDA, the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing), the Health Service Executive, the Tyndall National Institute and Kinsale Community Response to Dementia.

Speakers at the launch included Dr Michael Murphy, President of UCC; Prof Willie Molloy, who spoke about the CARTs and Let Me Decide initiatives and Rodd Bond of Dundalk Institute of Technology’s Netwell Centre, who spoke about the Louth Age Friendly County Initiative and the vision for COLLAGE going forward. Prof George Shorten, Dean of UCC’s School of Medicine, described what it means to be a Reference Site, and how COLLAGE and UCC’s ASSERT for Health Centre can contribute to active and healthy ageing in Ireland and beyond. Commissioner Geoghegan Quinn advised that we must consider ageing as an opportunity rather than a challenge, and “make the silver economy a gold mine” for our society.

Finally Declan Kidney, former Ireland rugby coach, who has recently been appointed as the Director of Sport and Physical Activity at UCC, spoke about the benefits of teamwork, and compared the individualisation of the training of elite athletes to personalised healthcare solutions as proposed by COLLAGE’s CARTs and Let Me Decide Initiatives.

I came across a series of beautiful photographs of people who have lived to be 100. These images were taken by photographer Karsten Thormaehlen who wanted to “take a deep look into eyes which have seen a complete century”. It’s well worth having a look.